Past Event

It's only fitting that three months after his death from a massive asthma attack, his sister, Sarah Mielke, has organized a casino night to benefit asthma patients.

"He died because he couldn't afford the proper medication," Sarah Mielke said. "That's where all the money is going - to help all the people who don't have the money for medication."

Matt and Sarah were very close - they both were adopted during the time when people could just go to the adoption agency and pick out the children they wanted, Sarah said.

"He picked me out," she said. "My brother pointed me out and said, 'I want Sarah to be my sister.' And he regretted it ever since."

Among the many great memories Sarah has of her brother is a particular incident that occurred when their parents were on vacation. The siblings decided to watch the horror movie "Nightmare on Elm Street" in the living room.

"Matt brought his BB gun into the living room and got scared and shot it off into the ceiling," she said. "Then he tried to seal it off with blue toothpaste, but the ceiling was white. He covered half the ceiling to blend it in, all because he got scared of a movie."

Matt was well known in town for being a prankster.

"He worked at Alpine Taxi and used to trick people at work," Sarah said. "He'd switch letters around on the keyboard and fill people's offices full of papers so they couldn't get in."

Saturday's Casino Night will be a fun way to help Sarah and Matt's friends deal with the grief of losing him.

The $15 entrance fee includes a raffle ticket, a beer and $20 worth of gambling chips to use in poker, blackjack and roulette. Each additional $5 will buy $75 in chips.

The top three winners will receive prizes that include an iPod, a digital camera, a stereo system, clothes and gift certificates. There also will be live music by DJ Lil' Kuhn.